Understanding the personal ‘a’ in Spanish
The ‘a’ personal has no translation in English
Post 178/365
Es miércoles, 20 de septiembre de 2017
Review Post: Saber vs. Conocer
Hello,
¿Cómo estás hoy? Espero que estés bien.
When we learn another language it sure is helpful when we get a direct translation: Yo estoy aprendiendo español – I am learning Spanish.
If I had to put a number on it, I might say that 70-80% is direct between Spanish and English. However, there are times when word order is very different or that things don’t translate at between the 2 languages. The personal ‘a’ is one such word that does not translate at all into English.
The ‘a‘ personal
Apuntes – Notes
1. The ‘a‘ personal is different from the preposition ‘a‘ which indicates a direction or time.
Examples: These are NOT the ‘a‘ personal
Vamos a las montañas – We are going to the mountains. (direction – with the verb ir)
Tengo una clase a las 10:00am. – I have a class at 10:00am. (time)
2. The ‘a‘ personal is used when the direct object is a person or a domestic pet/animal
Ejemplos:
Yo busco a mi amigo, but… Yo busco mi libro.
Ellos no conocen a Miguel.
Nosotros miramos la tele, but miramos a la gente.
3. There are many verbs that often have a person or pet as the direct object. It’s pretty easy to know which verbs will use the ‘a’ personal.
For example: You ‘help‘ a person, but not ‘travel‘ a person.
Yo ayudo a mi hermano los sábados. – I help my brother on Saturdays, but with the verb viajar, a person wouldn’t follow.
Ellos viajan a California en noviembre. – They´re travelling to California in November. – No need for the personal ‘a’ here.
Using the personal ‘a’
Here are 10 verbs that take the ‘a‘ personal ... if the direct object is a person or pet.
1. ayudar – to help
2. besar – to kiss
3. buscar – to look for
4. conocer – to know
5. escribir – to write
6. esperar – to wait for
7. invitar – to invite
8. llevar – to take
9. mirar – to watch
10. visitar – to visit
Modelos:
A. Los niños besan mucho a su perro.
B. Yo escribo a mi amiga en Europa.
C. Esperamos a nuestro hijo.
D. Danny invita a 8 personas a su fiesta.
E. Adi lleva a sus hijos a la escuela. (which ‘a’ is the ‘a’ personal?)
F. ¿Visitas a tus padres este fin de semana?
4. Note that the ‘a’ personal is NOT used with tener or hablar.
Ellos tienen 3 hijos y 2 perros.
Yo hablo con mi amigo todos los días. (hablar con)
Action steps: Reread the above information on the ‘a’ personal. Try to observe it in readings and people talking. Note that there is no translation in English, although sometimes it seems that there is.
Hope to see you here again tomorrow. We’ll continue with this topic.
Leave me a comment. Let me know if you have any questions.
Gracias y hasta mañana,
Carolina
